Night Haunter's Rise
by alricnighthaven
Summary: This is the story of Konrad Curze before he learned how to use his "gifts" fully. This begins his rise as the Dark King and details some of the trials, challenges and companions that he comes across before being removed from his adopted home. Happens before the Emperor comes to collect His son. Rated T for In-Universe violence.
1. Chapter 1 - Captured

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 1: Captured

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing!

* * *

The hunter looked at his prize and smiled. He had won this round and using his abilities would win the next several as well. It had taken a long time, years in fact to uncover the jewel before him and now he had it. Nostramo was his for the taking once he had gotten control over the ability to see the future. What other possibilities awaited he wondered to himself. Turning away he went to make the arrangements needed to move forward. It had been a long hunt, and well worth it. His greatest prize lay bound before him in a cage built to remove all sensations. Sensory deprivation was a tool like any other, and it would suffice for the moment. There would be time to play later, to teach a much deserved lesson and leave messages for those who would do evil. For now though, he had other plans to attend to. The man who would become the Dark King had much work to do, though the future was his to control.

* * *

It was dark, it was always dark on this forsaken world. Now it was more so, he could feel the weight of something over his head, it covered his eyes totally, the darkness had never been an issue for him. There was something else over his mouth and nose and he could just barely feel the presence of air before his mouth. Being trapped without any senses was new to him, but he would figure it out as well. For now his task was to assess. Figure out what he could to make a move, though this was odd. He could only feel pressure, when he attempted to move he could not. It was disconcerting perhaps? He did not understand the thoughts that others would have for this situation. Regardless for the moment he could wait and collect his thoughts.

* * *

The technician stood and watched as the hunter passed by. The hunter would someday soon rule over this world, likely more as well later. The man said nothing, it was better to say nothing. Made it easier to avoid gaining attention. Attention on this planet was a sure way to get yourself killed. He had no interest in getting himself killed. For the moment his only job was to monitor the prize. Turning back to the chamber the man looked around at the panels and controls. Everything was in order. He could see the man who would become the Dark King's waiting message. Though it was held in a cage built with it in mind and should not be able to see or feel anything it seemed that it could see him as well, though it was blinded. He left quickly on the first day. Whatever it was, the technician felt that he was better off without drawing too much of it's attention.

* * *

He waited quietly in the space where he was. Based on what he could feel he was kneeling perhaps, though he could not move anymore then he could see his surroundings with his natural eyes. Despite not having any external stimulus he could feel how much time had passed without trying. It had been nearly two cycles since he had woken up here. He should be able to remember how he got here, however that part of his thoughts seemed hazy. Reaching farther back he could see images of the dark where he had risen from, however he could not seem to put any sense to them. Almost as if they were being blocked somehow. Frowning slightly he focused, as he did so the room around him started to come into his mind's eye. That was when it hit him.

_The world was burning, people screaming and dying on a constant basis. This world was ripping itself to pieces sooner rather than later. One thing was always there, under all of the filth and grime. Under the vicious cycle of destruction that was running rampant on this world. Fear. Terror. The scent of it was heady when he had first encountered it, then he had learned what else it meant. Guilt. Only the guilty should feel fear. Fear of punishment for their crimes. Once the guilty had been purged and the rest brought into compliance then this system would be freed from it's sin. He could take on those sins, kill so that others didn't have to. Punish the guilty and take their sins unto himself. Yes he could do such things, he had already started and had been given a name by the people_. He had seen some of the future, and would bring his homeworld... No, his adopted homeworld to heel before he would move on. The visions showed him the path, he had but to walk it until he reached his vindication. However the visions took their toll.

* * *

The man who would be the Dark King noted it was the visions that brought pain. Seeing the maybes and potential futures become real was what happened. Most things happened exactly as predicted, some had not happened. Or perhaps not happened yet. Slowly this world grew to fear him, his powers grew as he left more messages. Sometimes they were heeded, sometimes they were not. That would not take long to change, satisfied that the work would continue he left again to continue making the future real. As more visions happened and told the future more changes were made to bring about the quiet he longed for. To cure the humans of this desolate rock of their sins by making them his own. Soon enough it would happen, the future was already known. He could see it as easily as he could watch a pict-vid.

* * *

Something was wrong with it, he thought. The Dark King's prize hung limp in it's cage, it was still breathing but it seemed cold perhaps? It appeared to be shivering even as it did it's work for the king. Looking down at the panels it appeared as if it was having some sort of event, however it was within normal safe limits so he made a note of it and let it go. It was not his job to question, simply to make sure the asset was usable. The shivering turned to shaking and the asset's vital signs started to drop rapidly. This happened every time the recordings needed to do their job and so they immediately started recording the images on the pict. After several minutes the recording was complete and the asset had relaxed again. It's xenos physiology was different but not entirely foreign. There was something about it that drew one in, if the technician had to give it a word he would call the Dark King's pet as "perfect". However by that same token he found himself utterly terrified as well.

* * *

Some form of psychic drug he had settled on. Likely a nerve block of some sort, he could receive inputs from his body but not send anything to it. There was something in this tank he was caged in that robbed him of his senses. Using only the pressure he could feel it seemed as if there was something binding his arms behind his back with the wrists and elbows held locked together with some long bracers. He had also determined that he was attached to those same bindings. It felt like his knees and the balls of his feet were being pressed on as well. Though perhaps it would be more accurate to say he was kneeling on something. However any attempt to move or stand brought no reaction, as if the nerves were there but not connected somehow. This would be troublesome. Until he could figure out more about how he could interact with his surroundings he could do nothing. As he contemplated what options were available another wracked him with pain and he gasped a moment before being dragged under again.

This time he saw a scene he recognized. It was from the past. There had been a woman there in the alley before him. She had been screaming, as they all do when they are taken violently by the gangs. This one fought, he had watched for a moment before he had decided to intervene. Her assailant was not aware of his presence until he found himself suddenly dangling from his hair. He screamed, something else that always seems to happen. This one would suffice to send a message, though before he could prepare the message properly he had felt something. A minor sting at first that hit his side with enough force to knock a man flat. It was enough that he let go of his target in order to deal with whatever had presented a potential threat to him. As he had spun to address this pest he had suddenly observed several things at once.

His vision was cloudy and he watched as the past, future and present all merged before his eyes. His curse had decided now of all times to make its presence known. It was a dizzying effect that took a moment to shake off as he drug his eyes back to the present only. Another sting hit him. He felt another sensation then, he felt the heat of a great fire except it wasn't happening now or here. Again he tried to force himself to the present, this time he had some success. While his eyes betrayed him his body had not, he felt something wet and warm in his hand as he broke the source of at least one of the stings. It screamed, but then that was a normal part of this place.

Another sting landed, followed closely by two more. He lost all sense of self as his mind's eye was overcome. Everything happened at once. _The galaxy burned before him and great darkness and Khaos rose over it in a ten thousand year darkness. Countless lives began and ended before him._ He knew he could not move and his head was thrown back as he shuddered against the sudden barrage of information. Some of it was true some was not, he had not yet learned how to disregard the false. Snapping his mind such he regained his sense in the present moment and dropped a body from either hand.

Yet another sting occured and then he was moving back away from the source once he could feel his body again. As he had slipped into the shadows he spun and found a handhold before he vanished and darted up the wall and several rooftops over before he succumbed again. _The world suddenly reeled and the vision changed to show something bright, so bright he could barely stand to look at it. No, not something, Someone._ His eyes filled with a golden light and he fell to his knees as he lost himself again and the light remained fixed in his mind's eye even as the darkness tried to overtake him.

* * *

Many men had been lost drawing this beast out and it had been worth it. He had based his entire hunt on a single report that his target seemed to be able to know what was going to happen next. The witch-sight it was called, and there were ways to activate it by force. The rounds they had all been using were designed to force the sight to come on and give visions. Some had actually had reports that the drugs had been able to give them visions, this had only been true in those that had them before though. It seemed the rumors had been true. His target had the sight alright, and for the moment he had succumbed to it.

The hunters approached the intended quarry with caution. Though he was down on his knees he was far from docile. Before they could respond he had suddenly darted forward and two more of the hunters were dead. Even weakened he was still perfectly lethal. The man who would be the Dark King trusted his own witch-sight and fired several shots at nothing as the target jerked it's way between his men. All of the blind shots hit the mark as he spasmed between the men the hunter had brought with him.

A scream escaped the quarry then and the target crumpled on the roof where he had taken the hits as he started to shake violently locked in the throes of his visions. The hunting party watched as he wordlessly gasped and his back arched in agony before a seizure took him down farther under. His blood escaped from both mouth and nose as the visions tormented the dangerous quarry they had brought low. The man who would become the Dark King did the only thing that made sense at that moment. He emptied his clip into the gasping Night Haunter's chest.


	2. Chapter 2 - A Name

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 2: A Name

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing!

* * *

Night Haunter kneeled in the strange substance with the apparatus covering his face. There were several small attachments underneath it connected with small pads. He suspected they were intended to monitor something he was seeing. At the moment that was precisely nothing. He could not see through the blacked out mask they had him in. But that didn't mean he could not make observations. There were sounds he could hear easily, men walking in regular patrols. One with a limp. Based on the movement they were far more afraid of him then he was of them. It wasn't surprising. The thing numbing his body had an odd odor. It was most likely created in a lab. When he attempted to move the liquid pushed back with as much force as he put into it. It felt as though he was submerged in it from the neck down.

Though his arms were bound with a pair of long bracers chained together behind his back. They would be simple enough to escape from. There was a collar around his neck, most likely to help hold the apparatus in place. Something was being pumped into the veins of his jugular and would be able to get at it easily enough once he could move. There were several other lines running to him as well, most seemed redundant. Based on the feeling it was a saline mix at the moment coming through the lines. Apparently they wanted him bound but not trapped in the visions. He would wait for now. Fear had a time and a place. Soon it would be here, but not yet. A voice came from all sides with an electric whine proceeding it. So his captor didn't want to speak directly to him. That was not surprising in the least.

"Welcome Night Haunter to your new home. You may find it is better then the streets and I hope it is to your liking." The Night Haunter listened quietly to the prattle. "Since you don't seem inclined to speak at the moment let's see if we can get a few questions out of you. Or at least answer some of them. Let me think, "Where am I?" well the answer to that is you on in my home in the depths of Nostromo. How about "How did you capture me?" I found out that you have had some sort of fit in the past and talking to things that aren't there. At least not yet, you're as sane as you are likely to be. I have a friend that shared that with me by the way." He paused for a moment before continuing.

"Your visions are unique to you and to this world. At least the ones I want are. I need those visions you see? The drug you were injected with is actually several times higher than the dose needed for a human, by an order of magnitude. For those without any gifts it makes them ill and they often end up dead after a lovely trip through the looking glass. Many of them think they are angels that can take to the sky and see the light of day for the first time. Needless to say they cannot fly and so they fall short." He laughed at his morbid joke and then moved on.

"Which brings me to how we captured you. We waited for you. Eventually you choose to save the girl and punish her tormentor. Sooner or later you were going to come to one of my traps. The first shot dazed you slightly, though you recovered quickly enough from that. To shorten it up I have a total of twelve men dead. We used a total of 35 of the rounds containing the dose to affect you. Most of those missed, several however hit their mark. Right now you can feel the tubes connected to your neck and arms, or perhaps you can't. For the moment I have those running saline. Can never have enough fluids they say." Again the man laughed at his own joke.

The voice was no longer coming from a speaker system as he moved within speaking distance after a few minutes of relative silence. There was someone above him and ahead, the Night Haunter could sense him. This man was just barely outside of the synthetic cage directly in front of him. Yet for the effort he put into any movement it was pushed back again. This substance that was resisting him moving was a problem that could be dealt with. As was the drug that had somehow subdued him. The Night Haunter remained silent for now and didn't bother to comment. He was already running scenarios in his mind.

"Not feeling much for chatting? Well that is fine, I suppose. The lovely helmet you are wearing is a more developed version of a prototype that I had some success with. It could draw forth images from those who wore it. I did any tests on subjects who were sleeping, then on subjects who were drugged. I found one with the sight among the subjects and it was a far better turnout. She saw a Dark King raising in the future. The entire planet was compliant and silent. This Dark King is destined to save Nostromo from the dirge that it has sung for itself. I mean to be the one to do so, and for that I need a roadmap. My own visions are not sufficient, they only go a few minutes into the future but yours. Oh those are lovely! I wish you could see what I see!"

The man's droning was irritating. Perhaps Night Haunter would use his skin to bind a book with this last epic of non-sense he was spouting off. The thought of the removal and how he would systematically take the man apart had moved to the front of his thoughts. There was only one punishment for any crime and the Night Haunter planned on enjoying passing sentence on this fool. He let his mind wander through the acts he would commit on the pest later. The man's exclamation of delight brought the Night Haunter back to paying some attention.

"You really do have quite a wonderful imagination! Mind you while doing that to me would be most interesting I would rather watch it happen to someone else. The unit fitted over your head is directly connected to your optic nerves. It also detects and sends over thoughts that come before, during and after one of your lovely visions. Did you know those can be controlled by the way? At present I expect that you are still developing those talents given to you."

The Night Haunter didn't reply right away, he had already processed the information available to him and had fifty escape plans should he need them. For now it was nothing he was concerned about. He was curious though as to how a mortal had gained such information about him. Finally the Night Haunter deigned to speak though his voice was low and dangerous,

"How did your friend come across such knowledge of me?" The man giggled happily,

"I have more. Much more! I think you should like to know some of what I know. It was a gift you see. From a friend that you will meet later. There are so many things I already know but I suspect you will give me the insight to use them. My friend gave me many gifts. I have some for you. Though perhaps I should keep them for now so we can talk about it later. Such a wonderful future we shall have together! Though for now I will need you to enjoy your trip. I can give you a gift when we are done today!"

The Night Haunter felt what was in the lines change and he instantly recognized the same drug that had been used on him earlier. He closed his eyes and his mind as he focused solely on his breathing. Partly because he wanted to feel the effects of this drug so he could counteract it later. Mostly to spite the iratent before him. The man continued his rant though Night Haunter paid him no mind. He still heard everything said and made his passive observations but he didn't care. One thing caught his attention.

"I suppose we should actually open the drips since they are not doing anything at 10%. Go to half of the dose for the Primarch. Don't worry about the reactions, he will live."

He felt the slow increase of the drug as his vision started to swim again though he resisted. The black is what he concentrated on now, nothing at all. The man calling himself the Dark King waited expectantly to see images of what was going through his mind. He would be waiting for quite a while. Night Haunter heard him speak up again, this time considerably louder.

"This is taking too long. Don't slowly increase the dose just push it up, I promise he can take it. If he couldn't then there really would be no reason for him to be here."

Night Haunter felt the drugs presence suddenly increase itself greatly. Though he could stall for quite a while eventually the visions overcame him and he felt them pass through him as though they were happening in the then and there. The madman started his giggling and prattling again as images started to come into view on his pict screen. If nothing else the Night Haunter could attempt to see what his visions showed him and attempt to make sense of them. Though the first one he was pulled to ripped him under and he was no longer kneeling on Nostromo. He was somewhere, and some-when, else.

* * *

_Before him was a giant, one he knew. Though he did not know him yet, he had no name to call him by. This man was white of hair, tanned and impossibly strong. This giant was wearing robes of fine quality that had been gold in color. Though much of them were stained red with his life's blood, enough of it to be lethal to nearly anything. It all belonged to the being before him. Not before him, realized the Night Haunter, beneath him. He was on top of this fallen man, no this fallen Primarch, he corrected himself silently. His hands were drenched in the crimson life of whoever was under him. There were voices, shouting. He could hear them but they were far away. They were calling him by another name, but it kept slipping past him._

_He felt betrayal. Hurt. He had confided something in a mentor, no in a brother and this other brother had cornered him about it. His mentor had been someone who would change, another brother like the one under him. They were all the sons of Him. The golden sun that would come. He drew his attention back down to the brother underneath him. This one was bleeding out and had been helpless before him for some reason, though Night Haunter couldn't recall it. There was one thought that came to his mind clearly and it drove home what he had to do._

_His brother's had censored their homeworlds. They had punished them for their crimes. Night Haunter would do the same. Now he would cleanse the taint that was Nostromo and he would give it blind justice for the sins of a world. His visions had always been true, always showing him the possible outcomes. He would be vindicated at the end of the road he tread upon. He had but to follow it._

* * *

The man who would be the Dark King started to laugh as he watched the screen before him. He could only see what the Night Haunter saw, but it was enough for him. This was where decision had been made to remove this planet from the galaxy. This single point in time was one that he would prevent. This was merely the end, for now it would suffice. He had already decided that he would save this world and rise up. That had been promised to him by the friend that had taken his mind and given him far more precious things instead. The vision faded from the screen and he watched the source of information come back to this moment.

The Night Haunter gasped and hissed in pain. There was something wracking both his mind and body as he came down from the vision, it had felt real. He could still feel the blood on his hands and at his mouth. Could still feel the warmth coming from the body underneath him. It was like he was there at that moment in time while still being in this one. His visions had taken him on a voyage and he was coming back from it now. Though he knew cold didn't bother him, now he felt it. For a few minutes he was freezing and shivering. Though that shouldn't be possible he had thought. A toll had been taken from him. It would be taken again and again until he had nothing left for it to take. The madman started talking excitedly again.

"That was lovely. I am sure we will have many such meetings! However I would share one last piece of information. I just want to know how you feel about it." He didn't bother responding. "That's fine. You don't have to talk to me. I have a riddle for you that I want to share. I think you will like the answer." He received no reply again. The madman who would become the Dark King asked,

"I am yours, but you will not use me. I have value, but cost you nothing. I was given to you, but you don't know me yet. What am I?"

"My name."

"Oh yes, you are good at riddles! I knew you would be, my friend said as much. So let me give you that gift I had promised you! Let me tell you the name He gave you." He laughed again. "Do you want your gift?"

"If I say no?"

"That's too bad then... Konrad Curze."

* * *

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Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this. More to come.


	3. Chapter 3 - Medic

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 3: Medic

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing

* * *

The technician watched the exchange between the Hunter and the Night Haunter. He paid attention though he said nothing. When his boss turned to leave the technician righted himself at the console. "If you see any additional visions let me know, I have a meeting to tend to." He gave a quick affirmative and turned back to his console. When the hunter left the room and the door closed with a swift hiss. "Dark King... that man is a tyrant..."

The door opened again and he stiffened up for a moment before another technician came in. This one was actually one of the medics. The two nodded a quick greeting to each other before they both went back to work. The room was large and open. When they had brought him in he had been unconscious. They had stripped of his rags and submerged him into the inertia tank in the middle of the room. There was open space around the tank all the way around before it hit the force field that wrapped around it. There was a cage of metal around that in case of a power drop out. Consoles and monitoring equipment stood near the cage in the middle of the room. There were guards armed with the rifles that contained the drugs they were using on the Night Haunter, well Konrad Curze apparently.

There was a single door in and out of the room and the entire complex was underground. He had gotten lost more than a few times when he first started here, though that had been years ago. This facility had been built several years ago and this room in particular had actually been completed before he had started working here. He had always wondered as to the purpose of this chamber; now it made sense. Though the Night Haunter had only just become active as far as he knew within the last few weeks. It wouldn't do for him to ask questions that would get him noticed.

He felt the presence of someone else when the door opened. That in and of itself was not unusual. Night Haunter actually sensed the presence of this person, felt the life from them so to speak. The primarch concentrated slightly and the presence came to life in front of his eyes. This one he could see while blinded, interesting. Across the room the technician's screen flickered and he looked at it in confusion. It was the medic who had just come in. The technician called out to her,

"Hey Sev, come here a second?" She rolled her eyes at him as she stopped and turned to address the technician. Though she did double back to see what he wanted.

"What is it now Daryn? You know I have work to do now that he is awake." The technician pointed at the screen. It was an image of just her standing as she was now leaning over the black. It only showed her in perfect picture without any of the objects around her. "Is this some sort of prank to get my attention?"

"No. This is the live feed from the reader. See for yourself. Everything looks the same now as it does on the pict screen.

"Nice try." She lifted her hand holding the clipboard and watched as she did so on the screen. After moving in different ways to confirm the movements actually followed her she whispered. "That's... not possible. He should not be able to see anything unless it's one of his visions."

"What do you think it is?"

"I'm not sure but I am going to find out." She walked back over to stand in front of the tank again. Daryn watched her and kept toggling between her and the screen. As she approached the tank she took the time to look at him and compare with her notes from his intake. The measurements of the sensors in the inertia tank were identical to her previous chart. Putting her data slate aside she stood in front of him again and actually started speaking.

"Can you hear me Konrad? I need to evaluate your condition and status. It would be easier for both of us if I could get your input." The fact that her presence was clear to him was interesting. He had already determined how to best get out of this local cage and had no reason not to play along for the moment. The hunter he had already decided was going to be sentenced. The rest were either accomplice or compliant. He would make his judgements on them once he had made his observations. For now he would be as cooperative as needed. Though he was more interested in gathering information and investigating this ability.

"Yes."

"Excellent. Can you tell me what you feel right now?"

"Yes." She waited for him to continue.

"Are you going to?"

"Why?" She could start to feel the beginning of a headache and she didn't feel like dealing with him if he was going to be like this. Some patients knew exactly how to be obstinate and she reminded herself that he had been brought here against his will.

"I would rather get more than mono-sylable answers from you. I am also wanting to figure out how you can see me right now. You can tell me what I am asking and we can get this over with or I can sedate you and attempt to pull your vitals. Hopefully before you have another fit from the medication." He reacted to that,

"What do you mean a fit?"

"If you were human I would put it akin to a heart attack. However I am not familiar with what your species baseline stats are so I don't know how accurate that description is. What I can tell is that I will have more information to answer your questions after the examination is done."

This medication you are talking about is the new drug on the streets?"

"That is a weaker version of it but yes, unfortunately it is." He could hear the disgust in her voice as she responded to his question.

"Then why do you put it out there if you despise it so? Innocents are suffering as a result of this drug yet it is allowed to run rampant in the streets? Perhaps Nostramo needs more correction than I had initially thought. As far as seeing you I have no idea at the moment." She ignored that question initially and addressed the technician instead.

"Daryn let me in please?" The metal cage opened and she stepped in. Once it was sealed behind her the force field opened and she entered that before it shut behind her. She hit a final button on the slate and the Night Haunter felt the numbing effect go away and instantly adjusted to the change though for the moment he made no attempt to move. The strange substance he had been submerged in slowly drained into a circular grate that opened around the edges of the cage. She answered his question as she initiated the final lock sequence on the inertia cage. It would take about thirty seconds to allow entry… or exit from the cage.

"As far as the drug goes what is on the street is not sourced here. All of our stocks are still in place and nothing is missing. It appears to have effects mostly as a hallucinogenic. So far in only a handful of cases, yours included, it induces "visions" and renders the user numb. The other problem is that it appears to also numb the vital organs it is traveling through in the blood-stream, this has led to multiple issues with cardiac arrest and seizures several of which have been fatal. Now that you have your information let's get to work."

This was the moment of truth, the Night Haunter could easily kill her and she doubted that anyone could do anything to save her should he become violent. When he made no attempt to move she took that for assent and entered the cage. Deftly she removed the lines running to his arms though she left the connection points in place and simply taped them down. She frowned at the bracers and with a series of clicks released them. Once that was done she reached up and removed the helmet with it's black oxygen mask. Despite the fact that he was still kneeling she had to reach up due to his great height.

He regarded her cooley as she removed the helmet. She had already decided that physically he was attractive with his alabaster skin and black hair, however it was the sudden presence of him that caught her unawares. The medic forgot how to breath as she lost herself in his eyes. Black on black and able to see far more than she would ever comprehend. In that instant she added another label to the several on her mental file of Konrad Curze. Perfect.

She lasted all of ten seconds before she had to turn away to look at the data slate and held up the robe towards him. "Please cover yourself, while you were unconscious there was no way to dress you because of your size. Leave your chest exposed so I can run some tests." He watched her blush as he accepted the robe and put it on. Though he didn't personally care he would oblige for the moment.

"Is there a particular reason this is still on and I cannot feel it?" He indicated the collar that supported the apparatus. To him it was still numb though he could feel the pressure from it's presence. He watched her expectantly as she started to answer his question.

"The collar serves two purposes. The first is that we can hook the thought reader to it so that it is secure in the event you have to be transported for any reason. The other is to make sure you remain as compliant as possible. Currently there are actually barbed catheters in your jugular on both sides. Both of those contain multiple doses of the Dreambringer drug. They can be triggered remotely or if you take a hit to the neck they can be triggered accidentally. Attempting to pull the collar off will snap the barbs and the beads it is held in as well. Each of those is distilled for maximum potency. A normal human could overdose on approximately 1% of a single bead at the maximum potency. You have five on each side. I cannot confirm since we don't know enough about your physiology however I believe it would be sufficient to cause permanent damage even with your physique and healing abilities. Based on your reaction earlier to 50% of the max dose in one of those through the IV I would expect it to end with an overdose if all ten were broken."

Night Haunter ran possibilities and calculations in his head faster then any mortal and he didn't care for the math. At this point in time she may actually be correct. Regardless he would not be in any condition to do what he needed while he was trapped in the visions. For now he would have to focus on learning how to be present both in the waking world and the futures he saw. That is an issue that would have to be corrected sooner rather than later.

He tied the robe at his waist leaving his chest and back exposed as he took in the details of the room at a glance and made adjustments to his plan. This entire room had clearly been fabricated with him in mind and had likely taken years to complete. He was unsurprised when the robe fit him without difficulty. It appeared the Hunter had been well briefed by whoever his friend was.

Once he was decent the medic stepped back into the wide area and tapped another series on her slate. An examination table came up from a panel hidden in the floor though it only went up a few feet, and several medical instruments came up from another of the panels. He looked at each one and immediately understood their use though he was unsure of where the knowledge came from. She gestured at the table, "If you would sit on the table please Konrad."

"That is twice you have called me by that name. I was given the name Night Haunter and that is what you will address me as." She paled under his gaze and if it was possible seemed to attempt to keep appearances.

"The Hunter has made it clear that we are to refer to you as Konrad Curze despite your objections."

"Do you fear him more than me?" He watched her reaction and was surprised at the mortal's mental fortitude before she answered.

"It doesn't matter which of you I fear more. Both of you are capable of ending my life in gruesome and painful ways so the end result would be the same either way. There would be pain and I likely would not be alive to regret it." She refused to look into his eyes again. "Please get on the table so I can do my job."

He sat down on the table though he was still taller than her even while seated on the low surface. The medic attached another series of monitors to his chest and back and watched as the display lit up with his vital signs. The reading made about as much sense as they had when he had first been brought in. Though they had been unable to verify why at the time. The rhythm of his heart was slow and steady, far slower than a human in peak physical shape. Though considering his stature that was not surprising. Making a frown she tapped and added to her mental notes before she gave him a command without thinking about it.

"Stay put."

Night Haunter concealed a smirk at her change in disposition, apparently working on something far more exotic than her usual patients presented a medical challenge. Again he obliged her request. She called out,

"Daryn let me out." The inner door opened and she stepped out. Once it was secure the outer door did the same. The technician watched her carefully the entire time she was in the cage Night Haunter noted. This one had feelings for the medic it seemed. The rest of the room had kept eyes trained on him.

She walked over to a cart with a portable machine on it and fetched a few other instruments that she dropped onto the cart before turning back to bring it over. One of the guards made to stop her and she paused,

"Nothing that can be considered a weapon can go in Dr. Sevatarion. You will need to put those back." He nodded towards a set of tools that happened to contain a scalpel and suture kit. She blinked and then laughed at him. That name caught his attention, it was important to him. Not yet though, he added that to his own thoughts as he watched her chastise the man.

"No I don't think so. I am the chief medical examiner and have full access to the patient. In addition if you hadn't noticed he is a weapon unto himself. Step aside and let me do my job. The command in her voice was clear and despite her comparatively small frame her presence dominated the guard. He stepped aside promptly with a mumbled apology.

The same procedure happened to let her back into the series of cages and she wheeled the machine over and positioned it directly in front of him with a lense facing his chest. There was a screen on it as well This one he was unfamiliar with and asked,

"The purpose of this machine is?"

"You'll see in a minute, if you watch the screen while it's doing its job. It is a type of examination device that runs an electromagnetic wave at the patient. It is capable of viewing the inside of the body and is neither painful nor invasive. This one takes constant images so it is a video feed. Most of the ones we have here are not very good and only take single shots." She flipped the machine on and let it work.

This he found interesting as it highlighted his bones first. Then it did another pass and lit up veins and organs. Each scan took a different type of image and it was a very useful tool he decided. A combination of several different functions commonly used in the past. He already knew how his anatomy functioned but seeing it in action was quite different. The medic looked at the images and made an "O" face. He was a backup set of every vital organ in his body, including a second heart. "Now the results from the quick evaluation make more sense."

There were also several organs that she could not determine a function for at present. She started making her notes as she began to talk to herself. Interest now vastly outweighing professionalism as she was fascinated by the being in front of her. Every now and again she would reach out to touch him and adjust the monitors. As the machine took its videos she repositioned it until she had the images she wanted. She didn't attempt to get him to do more than sit there. Not surprisingly everything she saw confirmed the sense of being as vastly superior to her as an adult was to a newborn. He inquired,

"Are you finished with your examination doctor?"

"Not in the least, but it is a start. I want to know how you could see me while wearing the thought reader. You should not have been able to see anything. Any ideas on that?"

"A few."

"Are you going to share with the class?"

"No."


	4. Chapter 4 - Two Places at Once

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 4: Two Places at Once

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing

* * *

The Night Haunter let her complete her examination and waited while she moved the machine around. Though he did spend time watching everything she did he paid more attention to the screen as she moved it to and fro. It took no effort for him to monitor the entirety of the room. He made note of the location and placements of the beads in particular when she went past his throat. He also knew how she would react to his next action. Though he gave her the pretense of a choice,

"Since you are so fascinated shall we try an experiment?" Her eyes narrowed as she looked at him though her curiosity clearly peaked.

"What did you have in mind?"

Without explanation he reached a hand up to the collar at his neck and pressed firmly on one side of it. He couldn't feel the crack from the numbing effect as some of the beads containing the Dream Bringer drug shattered.

She stared at him for a moment in stunned disbelief before her training took over and she started asking him questions and reaching for the flashlight in her pocket.

"That was stupid, depending on how many of the beads you just broke you could stop your heart!" He looked down at her and she decided to stop the lecture she was about to launch into. The doctor looked at him as his eyes started to lose focus and then turned and looked back at the screen. He had snapped two of the beads with just the pressure from his touch.

She started again as she watched his vital signs start to climb though not nearly as rapidly as before. The medic had a job to do and she didn't have time to put him into the full recording rig. Hunter would get mad at her later for not recording this but her entire focus was on monitoring the patient. He simply sat there looking at the middle distance.

"Konrad can you hear me?" She watched her monitors and him at the same time. After a moment he nodded slightly though his eyes were still out of focus.

"My name is Night Haunter and yes, I can hear you."

From his perspective there were images laid over each other, one was where he was now in a medical bay on Nostramo. The other tried to drag his mind away and he focused on staying grounded in both the present and the future at the same time.

_There was a rumble that reverberated throughout the deckplates and hull. He was on a space-faring vessel though he had never been on it before he knew these halls as he was rushed through them. There were men dressed in power armor and blood surrounding him. They were shouting something but he was too far away to hear it. He could taste blood in his mouth. Felt hurts that he didn't have yet. He was being carried somewhere._

The doctor monitored his vitals and tried to talk with him. "Do you know where you are?"

"I'm on a ship. No... I'm underground on Nostramo." He corrected himself. He had to learn how to manage these visions if he was going to be trapped with them for the foreseeable future. The best way to learn something was to do it. That was also how he learned how human bodies worked and what they could withstand but that would require more practice to master later.

She watched his blood pressure starting to go down and his breathing started to pick up the pace. There was clearly something that he responded to the drug had started, she assumed it was these so called visions Hunter had been talking about but she half expected it to be the hallucinogenic effect of the drug. However she still had a job to do. Konrad stood up to his full, and frankly daunting height as she tried to keep him engaged.

"Can you tell me how you got here?"

_His body pushed the combat hormones into his system as they fought. It was short but vicious. He could taste blood in his mouth. Smell the ozone of the lightning strikes raging about them. There was rain falling but he only registered it as a minor condition despite the lake falling from the sky._

_The first hit he had taken had cut through the pauldron from his shoulder and he felt the sting of the blow. Several smaller blows were rained upon him and while he moved to stop them he felt sluggish, like he had been taken by surprise despite his foresight. Then another blow landed, this he felt wrench into his gut as it tore through protective layers of ceramite. He lashed out at the source of his surprise and pain with his jerking attacks to launch his counterattack._

_That was when he recognized that there was something wrong, he could feel his hearts beating in his chest but at the same time they were failing him. His lung's could not take in air abruptly. His exposed throat was wet and hot. Blood gushed rapidly and violently from all of his sudden injuries. Far more than even he could afford to lose. He heard a voice he knew._

_"Fall"_

_They had been battling on a ridge formed with bodies both dead and dying in power armor, they had been at war with each other. A campaign that had started on the orders of another brother. Their sons had paid the price for this lethal encounter in blood. Curze tried to force himself to draw in air as he looked at the golden haired knight in front of him. He reached his hands up in disbelief at the ruins of his throat. Blood poured out between his grasping fingers as he stood upon that ridge of bodies._

The doctor looked at him and watched his blood pressure as it started to lower further in response to something he was seeing. He forgot how to draw breath as he struggled to drag himself back to the present again. One hand came up to his untouched and exposed throat. He choked out a barely audible response,

"Ambush,"

"That's right, tell me what you are seeing?" As she was trying to talk to him she monitored his status actively. She had already started to move anything that was not hooked up to the primarch out of her way. That he was still standing in and of itself was impressive, his vitals were dropping entirely too quickly though now. The doctor alerted the other nearby medics to a potential situation though her vox bead. She watched as he shook his head at something she couldn't see.

_He looked up at his golden haired brother and tried to speak. Konrad Curze saw them both before him. A tiny mortal doctor and his lethal older brother. He saw both the future and the present at the same time. They were too far apart, too disparate for him to manage both at once. The Night Haunter found himself standing in a medical bay. It lasted and lingered over the battlefield he was on. It was disorienting to be two completely different places and two different people at once. The bay started to fade from his vision though he could still sense he was in it._

_He heard the sound of thunder again. Felt the rain on his face and the water trying to wash away his blood even as it was fleeing his body. Night Haunter tried to force air past his cut windpipe. He looked up at the brother he would cross blades with later as he felt himself swaying weakly on his feet before he staggered. He was level with the insignia's on the primarch's armor._

"I see... crimson lions"

The doctor blinked and made a mental note of that for later to jot it down onto her charts. "Subject is hallucinating about jungle cats while on the Dream Bringer medication admitted via pressure bead." She watched as his knees started to shake and it seemed as if his legs were trying to give out underneath his weight. Her team of medics was just outside the containment fields now, waiting for confirmation. For now she let it sealed.

_His brother spoke again, his voice sounded broken, breathless as he issued a command._

_"Fall"_

_He was bleeding out and held a hand to his own throat to stem the flow of his life's blood. Curze's mouth worked wordlessly as he tried to say something but no sound came out. He reached a hand out and missed the shoulder of the knight in front of him before falling to a knee._

Sevatarion watched him stagger and instinctively raised a hand out to assist him. The thought that she could do precisely nothing to help didn't cross her mind until later. His vitals dropped dangerously low, if he went down any farther he could die. She snarled an oath as she called a code and ordered her team to come in with the crash cart.

The Night Haunter dropped to one knee and a feral growl escaped his lips as he attempted to claw back to now. It was harder then should have been possible. He was in a medical bay, he was not dying at his brother's feet on some faraway world. His mind knew that but his body couldn't keep up. The vision dragged him back so the only thing he could see was the battlefield.

_Konrad Curze found himself back on the in the rain, it was washing away his blood as fast as he was losing it. Cold, that was what he was starting to feel. It was a new sensation and one he had never felt before. His strength gave up and he collapsed onto his back. He wasn't entirely sure when his body had decided to obey his brother and fall but it had. The flow of blood had nearly stopped and the warmth had gone with it. His eyes saw only the lions of his brothers armor and the lightning crackling in the sky overhead. His eyes grew heavy and dark. He heard the voice of his brother speaking again,_

_"I told you, I would be the end of you Curze." Part of him believed that, but that part was wrong._

The Night Haunter's breathing was laboured despite his extra lungs, his body seemed to forget how to use them properly while it felt the mass of lethal injuries. His twinned hearts had slowed down trying to reduce his blood flow from the wounds he had not yet received before they too failed him. He dropped to the floor in a heap. Sevatarion calmly started giving orders once he fell. The Night Haunter never heard her call the code-blue. That was the first time both of his hearts stopped.

It was far from the last.

* * *

Author's Notes

I took the descriptions of the actions during his vision from the Prolouge of "Prince of Crows" and adjusted it to be from Konrad's persepctive. It's an enjoyable read if you haven't already and is includes in the "Shadow of Treachery" compliation.

Please Rate and Review! Feedback is a gift.


	5. Chapter 5 - Code Blue

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 5: Code Blue

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing

* * *

The medical team rush in as the Night Haunter lay on the ground. His breathing had stopped altogether when the ground rushed up to meet him. Sevatar started issuing orders as they lowered the cages to admit the medical team. Unfortunately, the primarch had collapsed and lay partially on his side. Sevatar called,

"He is too heavy I need you lot over here to roll him onto his back," to the guards. They hesitated and she snarled, "If he dies Hunter will kill all of us, slowly I expect. Now get over here." Their hesitation forgotten the guards also entered the open cages and helped to push the Night Haunter over onto his back. Unsurprising with his stature he was damned heavy and the extra hands were needed.

One of the critical nurses started chest compressions as soon as he could. This was an instance where the fused ribs of the unconscious primarch got in the way. Chest compressions did very little good because of the inflexible nature of his ribs. Sevatar however did not tell him to stop. The first order of business was to get the Night Haunter breathing again and the doctor moved rapidly to kneel next to the patient.

_He was cold. This was a chill he had never felt before that he could recall. There were people all around him that he could hear. Sharp commands were issued by someone. Presumably a medic, he could hear them but the sounds made no sense. He could feel hands on his body, removing his armor and body glove to get at his injuries. Curze couldn't feel anything other than pressure of his son's hands. One of them was pushing down on his chest then releasing pressure over and over again. It hurt, so at least he could feel pain. That was a good sign he decided before the sensations faded. Then he couldn't feel anything anymore as he went in and out of wakefulness._

"Prepare to intubate and bring that over here aimed at his chest." One of her personnel brought the scanning machine over as directed. The Doctor frowned at the machine's screen as she looked between his two sets off lungs, luckily both had the same point of entry for air. She also saw that two more of the beads had somehow been broken. Likely when he had grasped at his throat she decided. However, that did not matter right now. Reaching for the blade she started the procedure and carefully inserted it into his mouth.

"Tubing" She held her right hand out and took the emergency tubing as she moved it into position she glanced up at the screen and did quick math. "This is not long enough. Bring me the uncut tubing, largest gauge we have." One of the orderlies took off like a shot from a bullet. Sevatarion didn't move as she was acutely aware of the fact that she had a blade tipped into his mouth to give her access to his airway. "Hurry up!"

The orderly came back with an uncut emergency tube. This one was the largest gauge they had, though it was intended for veterinary usage it would suffice. Sevatarion didn't ask him where he had gotten it from and honestly didn't care. He handed her the tubing and she carefully started guided it down his throat, periodically looking up at the screen to track her position. Once she had it in the best place to attempt to give air to both sets of lungs, she cut the end and attached the white locking mechanism around it to help keep its place and give them something to connect to.

_Despite being near death he had a surprising amount of awareness. He knew he had stopped breathing and he felt more pressure in his mouth and on his tongue for a moment before something was forced down his throat. He started choking and the agony in his savaged throat came to the front. A breathless growl would have escaped him if he had air for it. Someone else yelled and he felt the tube pulled back out. Some adjustments happened and he felt as his head was lifted slightly and tipped back. This time the tube they were trying to get down his throat cooperated and they managed to lock it in place._

"Bag." With a few quick clicks onto the end of the emergency airway one of her nurses started pumping the bag to get the air moving again. Sevatarion glanced over at the reading for blood oxygen. It was too low but it had stabilized rather than continuing to dip. One hurdle down, only too many more to go.

_The sudden presence of air again was a relief he had not been expecting. There were still hands on him, touching, poking and prodding. He felt multiple somethings stuck onto his chest though he was not entirely sure what exactly they were off hand. Perhaps he was losing brain functions? The thought was amusing for a moment, he had done this before but he could not remember it for some reason._

"Push Epinephrine, Naloxone and Atropine. Bring me the defibrillator, I need to have at least some sort of rhythm to shock him." She didn't bother to comment that the chest compressions she had ordered were still not helping because of his physique. Hopefully the medications they were pushing would give her something to work with, otherwise the Night Haunter would not be the only one dead.

_His sons were tending his injuries as best as they could. Konrad Curze could feel them using medical instruments inside of his weakened body as they located the bleeding organs and attempted to staunch the blood loss. Someone had started running lines into him and he could feel fresh blood being pumped into his veins. He attempted to move and all he succeeded in doing was shivering on the table. To him this didn't feel familiar. This wasn't supposed to be when he died, perhaps his visions had been wrong._

The nurse who was attempting chest compressions was panting with effort. He had been going for nearly three minutes. "Trade places. I want you to rotate out every two minutes." The other nurse took his place and continued compressions while he took a break. People didn't realize the amount of exercise that saving a life would give you. Sevatarion had moved down to be at his side rather than his head and kept a hand at his wrist.

There was still not a heartbeat to work with. At the rate this was going they were going to lose him. All of this had happened and they were only a few minutes into the code. She also had no intention of calling it until she had no choice.

"He has two hearts, place pads here, here, here and here. That should give us sufficient space to shock both hearts at once as soon as he has a rhythm we can use." She squeezed his unresponsive wrist and closed her eyes for a moment focusing all of her will into getting his hearts to beat again. "Come on Konrad, give me something I can work with."

_They were making noise again but still it sounded too far away. It was all just background static, garbled and unintelligent. Something else caught his limited attention. He felt something a calming presence that had entered the room unnoticed by the apothecaries working on him. This being drew him like a cat to the mouse. There was power there, though it's wielder choose to let it sit untouched. Suddenly there was someone's hand touching Curze's. It was warm to his cold skin and he found himself focusing on that single point._

_Curze attempted to open his eyes and was only partially successful for a moment as the fluttered and closed again. He could see his hand at his side. Resting on top of it was a smaller gauntleted hand. It was crimson red, the same color as blood. This was a person that was marked for death. He had marked the man as a traitor and a fool though he didn't know why. Somehow, he trusted him, at least as much as he could trust his sons. Konrad Curze could see him in his mind's eye. A powerful warrior and his most trusted if not infuriating son. Curze didn't even know his name yet._

"I've got a rhythm! It's weak and intermittent but I will take what I can get. Charge the unit." The Night Haunter's hearts had decided to beat again. Sevatarion didn't know why or how but she wasn't going to question it. "Clear." She discharged the pads and watched as he barely moved. "Increase the charge. Charge. Clear." They hit him again and this time he actually moved. His head tip back slightly, but that was it. She looked over to the critical nurse monitoring his heart.

"No change yet. His heart, hearts, didn't respond to the second charge."

The Doctor frowned as she reached over to grasp his wrist again before continuing. There was a pulse there but it was negligible. She fairly growled at the body on the ground in front of her,

"You damned stubborn ass Konrad Curze. If you manage to survive this, I will find a way to haunt you and make jabs at for the rest of your existence, even if I have to have my grandchildren making them for me!" He didn't respond to her, at least not physically. "I don't care if we burn the defibrillator out. Increase and charge. Clear."

_He felt the warmth still on his hand and felt a small shock, it was static for all the effect it had on him. Then another, this one was stronger than the last but not enough to trouble him. The electricity was only a minor bother to the primarch, though it narrowed his focus so he could only see the son next to him. The man wore midnight black ceramite armor. Painted across it were cracks of lightning, his hands were stained red. His eyes were the black on black all of his sons bore and he looked down at his gene-sire with no malice or judgement. His gauntlet was resting on the primarch's still-shaking hand._

_Konrad Curze tried to move and failed. All he could do was lay there and shiver from the cold that ran through his veins. He heard a whine building up before he watched the lightning of his son's armor moving and threading down his limbs and onto the red of his gauntlets. His son released his hand and then leaned forward to rest a palm over either of his weakened hearts._

_Konrad Curze felt electricity coursing through his body. His black eyes widened in surprise as the shock started and then stopped suddenly. He laid there gasping and trying to get his breathe back despite the tube down his throat. His son leaned forward and then adjusted his hands on the primarch's chest._

Sevatarion looked at the defibrillator in annoyance. They had abused the machine trying to get a response out of him and it had done very little, even though they had shocked him repeatedly. She knew she was going to have to do something she didn't expect to work but it was all they had left. This was something she hated but she had known she had a knack for getting the most severe patients to suddenly start responding to treatment. She also did not want to share with her staff.

"Get more adrenaline into him and bring over the second defibrillator. We are going to use one on either heart at the same time. I will take over chest compressions for now." One of them left to get the backup defibrillator unit and came back quickly. The critical nurse pulled another syringe of adrenaline and administered it as the Doctor started her own round of chest compressions counting as she was going.

Allowing her eyes to lose focus as he looked down at the unconscious primarch underneath her she gathered her thoughts and her intentions. If she failed to save him they were going to be killed by the Hunter. That was something she refused to accept. She gathered her strength and allowed herself to build up pressure as she drew upon her own powers. It felt wonderful and dark all at once. Her mental barriers came down as she stopped suppressing her talents and then focused on his primary heart. Sevatarion forced her will for him to live into the fallen Night Haunter's chest and felt herself pulled into his vision.

_There was a look of focus on his son's face and Curze could feel the warmth of his rising psychic energy. With a fake smile on his face the trusted son looked down at his father and spoke softly,_

_"I am here to save you." Curze didn't try to keep the amusement off his face as he lay there dying. Both of his hearts were refusing to get back to work, it was only a matter of time before he succumbed. His son gave him a fierce grin as he leaned in and put more weight on his primarch's chest. "I'm glad you enjoy the company of my dry humor my Lord."_

She looked at the man next to the primarch, he looked familiar to her though she was quite certain she would remember someone that large. His presence stood out in her mind like a warm fire. It was comforting, calm and confidant. This person was important to the Night Haunter for some reason. After they saved his life she could figure it out for now all that mattered was that he survive. She focused on his heart beat as she put her own hands on his chest and sent healing energy into him.

Even as the doctor felt her energy waning she felt hands on her shoulder as she was pulled back from the Night Haunter. Though she saw nothing for a moment she heard the other man, his voice stuck in her mind and refused to leave. It was a mystery for another day. One of the orderlies looked at her concerned,

"Doctor you went white as a sheet and started breathing hard. Are you alright?" She looked at the screen and monitors again before she responded.

"I'm fine, it's been a while since I was the one doing compressions. I forgot how much effort goes into them. We have a different rhythm to work with now and both defibrillators are set up. Charge both to max and on my mark." The critical nurse had gone to the other unit and charged it up.

"Clear."

_Before he had a chance to recover this time a bolt of lightning struck him and Konrad Curze's back arched. His entire body felt the energy coursing through his veins reawakening the slumbering nerves and setting them on fire. A silent scream escaped him then as everything turned to fire. It felt like it had lasted an eternity though he knew it had been merely seconds at most. Once the bolt had discharged, he dropped back onto the table. His chest was tight and damned if it didn't hurt like hell. His son still smiled at him and read the expression that was apparently on his face,_

_"This is not where you die sire."_

* * *

Author's notes.


	6. Chapter 6 - Laughter

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 6: Laughter

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing

* * *

The Hunter received the alert of Konrad Curze's sudden state and had pulled out his data slate to watch the code. At first he had been furious at the loss of his asset, of the visions he would gain from the trapped primarch's presence. Then the doctor his companion had fairly forced him to take had proven her worth. The entire code had lasted perhaps half an hour and Curze had been nearly dead for most of it. Though somehow the woman had managed to lead her team to resuscitate him.

He had gone through and watched the footage again and then rewound it to the initial assessment when she had first walked in. Hunter glanced over to the woman sitting across from him, she watched with some interest as he went through the footage. A smile played on the woman's lips as she observed the entire video before commenting.

"Somehow that behavior doesn't surprise me. From either of them." Hunter turned and looked at her fairly growling,

"Care to share your insights woman?"

"I think I will reserve some of those for myself. Though this is not when or where he dies, at least currently. Things can change." He looked at her thoughtfully, currently quite sane though still questioning.

"You have yet to give me a name, or a reason for helping me."

"It is simple. Nostramo needs it's dark king. You are uniquely suited to the task I require you to complete. It also helps that you have some small talent to the witch-sight."

"You have yet to answer me why."

"Nor will I." He curbed his sudden irritation as he glared daggers at her.

"Then let's get back to work."

* * *

The Night Haunter's breathing was still labored though rapidly restoring itself towards normal with some assistance from the machine. His back had arched and he had suddenly dropped again, which was normal for someone being shocked. Then his stats had returned to closer to the baseline that Sevatarion had noted earlier. The code was clear and he would live. If he had been human she would have expected him to remain asleep for a day or more. As it was he could likely recover far faster then that.

Sevatar sighed as she looked over at her medical staff and got them debriefing while she addressed the chart and made her notes again. She grumbled when she remembered that he needed to be wearing the damned thought helmet and told them to get it on him while she busied herself with the paperwork that went with emergency codes. This chart was exceedingly difficult to fill out for some reason and kept getting blurry. Sevatar looked up at the clock on the wall as she rubbed her eyes.

"I didn't realize it was so late..." She looked back over to her patient. He laid there apparently asleep his vitals back to what was considered stable for him. Sevatar finished her notes on the code and shook her head from the sudden fatigue. Her staff looked over at her and one of her nurses spoke up,

"Doctor, before the code you had been up and running tests on Curze for several hours without bothering to take any breaks. You might be a bit... tired?" There was an edge of sarcastic humor there that Sevatarion did not fail to notice. She grumbled assent and handed the chart off to the nurses.

"I'll be back after a shower and a nap. Use Monygham if you need a doctor while I am taking a break. I won't be too long. Also get a heater blanket on him, he is still shivering." With that Sevatar walked out, going through the exit procedure again now that the current crisis was averted.

_The boy watched everything with rapt curiosity. His frame and body were wiry and sinewy. Easily far more powerful then the larger forms of the adults he had observed. The child, if he could be called that, had risen from the depths of the darkest depths of Nostramo. A blade had been his pacifier and the wreckage of a tube had been his crib. __It was cold here, in his dreamscape. It was always cold when he was having the visions... __Perhaps he could use that sensation to tell them apart. He remembered that thought but not where it had come from when he was still small. Now it made sense. Back then he had been here in his visions. Now the reverse was true, he moved pieces to the mental puzzle he was building himself. His thoughts rushed back to the present to the medical bay._

Night Haunter was finding how to process the information overload he was being bombarded with. At least in part. He allowed his eyes to remain closed as he worked his way through the last few visions and started to remember the sensations that had gone with them. He would use this experience as the basis from which he could sort the torments that had been wrought upon him since he could remember.

For now Night Haunter's focus was on sorting through the recent visions of his fighting his knight brother. The ones that had been brought up by the drug seemed more intense then previous ones. Though for some reason his throat felt raw and savaged. He was half surprised that he was not covered in his own blood. The surge of adrenaline and other hormones was still in his system and without an outlet he had apparently been shivering. The half life of the Dream Bringer drug was entirely too long, though it had only been a matter of hours since he had taken it. His system should have already filtered it out. A male voice he did not recognize was speaking. Based on the grumbles, mostly to hear himself speaking.

"That woman should never have explained as much as she did anyway. The subject while physically superior cannot possibly have gotten the training to understand what is going on. I don't understand why she is indulging him. If she had just done her job there would have been no need for a code to be called. Honestly, he is not all that impressive, more monster then man. I really don't understand all of the fascination for an oversized weapon." At that point the man turned around and looked at the Night Haunter.

So far as he could tell there had been no change at all in the past few hours. He was decidedly the most exotic thing that Monygham had to work on. The monitors had been reduced to the minimum amount that he could get away with and their placements were textbook perfect. At least they would have been, if Konrad Curze was human. The doctor had also confirmed the restraints were present and locked down tightly.

He was laying on his back on the examination table. There was a different medic that had his head turned towards the supine Night Haunter. The Night Haunter registered the man's presence though the helmet prevented him from seeing the medic but he had enough to know what he was dealing with. His vision still swam as he felt the man coming towards him. There was less of the drug in his system and he felt he may have been able to manage it. He shook his head slightly to clear his vision.

He could here the other man speaking. "You nearly killed yourself. So you have restrained for your own safety. Your awake, now then I suppose we should go through and update this chart. First things first though since you appear to be able to breathe on your own let's get that tube out." The medic reached down towards his exposed throat and the thrice damned collar and Curze felt himself slip between places again.

_He was on another world again. A barren wasteland this time. Konrad Curze fond himself wrestling on the ground hands locked around the throat of an enemy. The knights armored hands were a mirror grasping at his own exposed neck. Suddenly the tumble ended and he had won the high ground. Curze was kneeling over the primarch beneath him. He forced his considerable bulk down to strangle his brother watching the life flee from his eyes slowly. "Die" he breathed in a low growl._

The man didn't recognize the initial movements though he did hear the bindings snap at the same time he felt his feet leave the ground. As his mind processed what was happening a massive clawed hand was suddenly at his throat. He hadn't registered the movement before he found himself held in the air easily by the Night Haunter. The medic started to voice an objection and it died faster then his breathe. Though the Night Haunter had somehow restrained himself from murdering the medic the man found himself lifted and drawn up to be level with the primarch's still covered face.

_He froze. Konrad Curze was strangling his brother but that wasn't the only thing he had his hands on. As the Night Haunter he was still in the medical bay on Nostramo and had a hand wrapped around a mortal's throat. Shaking his head he forced himself to breathe in and focus on both places at once. It was far harder then it should have been to split his attention._

With his free hand the Night Haunter reached up and removed the intubation tube from his throat, he still hadn't bothered with the thought helmet yet though. Surprisingly it was actually helping him to focus on where and when he was. Though actually acting in just the now and not the then as well was hard. It took a considerable effort of will not to crush the man's neck.

It wouldn't serve him currently to end this man's life, though he was sorely tempted to do so anyway. The technician reached over to activate yet another fail safe in as the inertia cage activated again and the effects of gravity became far stronger then they had been. It was suddenly several times more potent then it had been before. He compensated instantly. The fact that somehow the mortal in his hands was unaffected by the sudden change in gravity was the only thing that saved the man's life when the vision overlapped again.

_Suddenly he felt a weight upon his back and ceramite pushed into his spine. blade pushed through and sundered part of his chest plate leaving the tip of the sword thrust out below his collar bone. He screamed in pain as he grasped at the sudden protrusion. One of his brother's sons had leapt on his back. Hauling himself from his kneeling position over his brother he reached back for the thing that had hurt him._

_The knight lost his grip on his weapon and instead settled for catching a heavy chain hanging from Curze's pauldrons and slapped it about the primarch throat. The knight hung on for dear life as the badly hurt primarch tried to get him off. Curze stumbled weakly and thrashed against the metal garrote that had found it's way around his throat. His breath came in shuddering ragged gasps as the improvised weapon crushed vertebrae. Then he shifted and through the legionnaire violently freeing himself from the chain. While he moved in the vision he forced himself to remain standing and unmoving in the medical bay._

The technician was mumbling into his vox bead as he watched the unfolding disaster trying to raise Sevatar again. For the moment it appeared that the Night Haunter had forgotten about the medic he was holding onto. Or more likely decided to spare the other man for some reason. Either way Daryn was not going to tempt fate anymore then they already had.

The vox yelled at Sevatar while she was trying to take a shower. She fairly snarled at the thing,

"What?" It was Daryn on the other end, apparently he had come back on duty.

"Konrad may put Monygham out of your misery." A strings of Nostramo oaths left her lips as she quickly pulled on some civilian clothes she had left out and snatched her vox bead and her badge.

"I'm on my way."

The Night Haunter stood motionless though the man he held in the air was trying vainly to pry his fingers lose. While the danger was still very real, the fact that he was still quite able to breath should have given him time to think before he did something exceptionally stupid while being held in the air by a primarch. A voice from a concealed vox in the helmet spoke softly. So far below the human range that it would be impossible to be overheard.

"Lord Curze can you hear me?" That voice... he knew it but not yet. This was no vision or dream. His head tilted, barely perceptible. The voice continued, "Excellent. Then know that for now I am an ally." The HUD inside the helmet suddenly lit up and started scrolling through information. He memorized it instantly as the images and schematics shot through the display screen. "That should be enough to help your escape, when you go take the doctor and the technician with you. You will need them later. Oh and have a parting gift. They are set on a time release." The voice cut out and the HUD died as suddenly as it had started.

Apparently he had someone that claimed to be an ally involved now. This would prove to be interesting. He adjusted his plans accordingly. The Night Haunter found himself continuing his vision.

_He was weak, he had been strangled, beaten, bleeding, cut and stabbed. He had started to laugh as the angels had started hauling their lord away. His own son's were pulling him away from the knight and his laughter ceased. Both of them were snarling curses and oaths at each other. Neither of them had the strength left to free themselves from their sons grasps as the two warring legions dragged their primarch's away from each other like children fighting. He found it hilarious for some reason._

At that moment the good doctor decided to come back into the room.

"What in the foundry hells do you think your doing?"

Konrad Curze started to laugh.

* * *

Author's Notes

So most of the visions from this chapter are based on the short short "Savage Weapons" from the Age of Darkness Anthology. Excellent read and I do of course recommend you read and enjoy it! The doctor Monygham is actually the name of a character from "Nostromo" the novel by Joseph Conrad written in 1904.

The gift of feedback is always welcome!


	7. Chapter 7 - Honest Answers

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 7 – Honest Answers

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing

* * *

Sevatarion stopped and stared at him as did everyone else in the room. Konrad Curze laughing was absolutely terrifying. She wasn't sure if it was the tone, the smile, or just his presence. That laugh filled the room with an aura of palpable dread. If she didn't know better she would have thought the complex had gone down several degrees below freezing. Regardless, if he never heard it again it would be too soon.

As the shock of his laughing wore off they realized that Monygham was still trying to free himself. The guards had leveled their weapons at Curze though the doctor had to point out the obvious.

"How do you plan to shoot him which he is inside a force field and an inertia cage?" None of them answered. Though one of them looked at Daryn expectantly and then snapped.

"Lower the force field and leave the physical cage in place so we can put it down." He hesitated as he looked between the medic and guard before he started to reach for the console.

"Daryn if you open that force field Monygham is going to die as well. Likely to one of these idiots shooting him." The other medic's attempts to get free were starting to dwindle as his strength was failing him against the impossible resistance that held him aloft. The man was trying futilely to free himself from the primarch's strong hands, though the fact that he was still breathing was a miracle in and of itself. Or at least a very good indicator of the Night Haunter's self-control.

_He went from laughing at his and his oldest brother's childish behaviors to suddenly hearing someone else laughing. The Night Haunter fell silent as he observed. He was watching something from the shadows. It was dark out, not enough to even bother him and this at least seemed familiar. Looking around he saw he was in a fine building, a barony or castle of sort he expected. A single glance out the window told him where he was. Still on Nostramo, this was the grand palace in Nostramo Quintus. His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked around. He reminded himself he was still in the medical bay._

As suddenly as he had started laughing the Night Haunter stopped. Slowly he lowered the struggling medic so the man's feet were just touching the floor. The primarch's hand was still wrapped tightly enough around the medic's throat to keep him where he was without cutting off his air. Ever so gently the Night Haunter's thumb moved up and down one side of the man's throat. Like one would do to comfort a scared animal. Monygham tried and failed to stifle a whimper of terror. The Night Haunter tilted his head to one side as if listening to something. Beyond that the primarch could have been a statue if he wanted to be.

_These creatures were cravens and cowards. None of them deserved to taint the air with their breath, however some of them had a use for the moment. He listened to their conversations, easily overhearing hundreds of different dialogues from dozens of conspiracies. There would be time later to tend to these crimes and he would purge the corrupt and unworthy when the time came. He would take their crimes and make them his own. He did not mind sacrificing the few to save the many. Though he wouldn't deny himself the pleasure of their screams later either._

Sevatar spoke up again,

"Konrad can you hear me?"

He heard her voice in both the waking world and the vision, it was easier to divide the two and manage both at once now.

"Yes doctor I can hear you."

"You realize there are several guns pointed at you at the moment?

"Yes. Do you think you can hit me without killing your man?" His voice was clipped and he didn't bother to hide the sarcasm dripping beneath the helmet.

"No, I suppose not." She shook her head and held a hand out towards the guards. The doctor stepped closer so she was just outside of the outer cage. "Will you let Monygham go?"

"Is there a reason I should? Tell me honestly Dr. Sevatarion, would you care if I killed him here and now?" There was no malice in that voice, simple curiosity. The doctor still held in the primarch's grasp tried in vain to extricate himself. As he attempted to twist his way free with terror plain on his face. Night Haunter's hand tightened slightly. The man's struggles ceased instantly. It took her a few seconds to answer the question,

"Honestly? I hate the man, he is more trouble and ego then he is worth most days. There are entirely too many people he likes believe are below his time and effort to tend to. Since they cannot afford the good doctor's premium rates. He will be among the first to admit he rose to his rank through ruthless efficiency and being the best at what he does. Which is not so uncommon here on Nostramo. His ilk is the kind I would love to see excised like a cancer. So personally, no I don't care if he dies."

There was a moment of stunned silence as the room took in her declaration. Monygham started a confused mix of begging and trying to fight as he lost control of whatever decorum he had maintained. The man's mewling tears didn't serve him in the least as the hand around his throat denied him the air he so desperately needed to live. Sevatarion continued,

"Professionally however I do care if he dies. For the moment I need him alive and fully functional, despite our conflicts in regards to the care of our patients. As I said, he is the best at what he does, that is the reason Hunter selected him for this contract. Now that I have answered your question honestly If you would be so kind as to release my consul and current partner that would be most convenient."

As suddenly as claw had been at his throat it released and Monygham found himself gasping desperately for the oxygen he had been missing from his new found home on the floor. He didn't dare look up at the primarch and contented himself with being small and on the floor at the monster's feet. Clearly not paying any further attention to his current physician Night Haunter let his hands relax to rest by his sides. He kept the helmet on for the moment, it was still helping his focus and he would take it apart later to see how. The medic started to move away slowly as if scared he was going to be attacked again. Sevatar continued,

"Daryn clearly changing the inertia cage does nothing, turn it off." The Night Haunter asked.

"How was he unaffected by the change in gravity.?"

"The field only affects the person wearing that collar. It drags it down so that it feel like gravity has gotten stronger but all it is an overcharged magnet. Which is why none of the medics have any metal and most of the machines are plastic or other unaffected substances. So not really messing with the gravity in the area at all. To my knowledge only the foundries use gravity and anti-grav tech, mostly for load lifting and transport."

_There were people dancing, some sort of grand gala. He was watching a feast in progress, the nobles wasting so much in their display of opulence. This was all of the Barons and Baronesses of Nostramo in one place. He wanted nothing more then to murder them and get this display of criminal filth and corruption out of his way. That message would be crystal clear when he delivered it. Regardless of station if you commit a crime and seek to avoid justice then it would come to you and rain upon your house. Nostramo needed to be corrected and he would be the one to do so. He would become the sin taker that was needed to save others the taint of sins._

"That... makes sense." His response was for both Sevatar and himself. He still had not bothered to move and was clearly not threated by the room as a whole. He was also paying attention to something else entirely though he didn't seem to have problems interacting with her.

"Mind if Monygham and I trade places?" He didn't deign to answer that question. She nodded over to Daryn and he started the process of letting her into the cages. Once she hit the inner force field and the cage behind her was secure the same process happened to get into the field. The other doctor scrambled clear. She ignored him as he skittered out of the reach. "Let's just have a conversation."

_His perspective changed again. The grand hall fell away and he found himself curled on his side on the ground. It was cold and wet, not that either particularly bothered him. This was familiar, he had been here before. Then it registered for him, this wasn't a vision it was a memory._

_For the moment he knew only one thing, he was hungry. Very, very hungry. It was a matter of short work to chase and kill some of the vermin, they did not have a lot of meat to them but he ate regardless. He would greedily suck on the bones and strip them of the marrow to get as much sustenance as he could. He found himself hungry more often then not. Even while he was starving he saw only death and murder, even in his sleep. He didn't realize he spoke out loud._

"What do you want to eat?" The Night Haunter turned and looked in her directions as she spoke. "I mean, I don't know what you like. Clearly you didn't get enough to eat as a child." She gestured vaguely in his direction, and he simply stood and listened to her. "We can continue after you eat something, it may help if you intend to keep doing that." This time she indicated his neck. "Unless you don't want to? Eat anything I mean." Neither his posture nor what was visible of his expression changed and the doctor just felt like this was awkward. "Right I'll bring back a few options and you can pick what you want." She turned and left the cage.

_The unnamed child listened as someone screamed. Curious the child followed the sound to the source. Some unlucky woman cornered by one of the street gangs. He processed what was happening as he approached silently. Three men were having their fun as he watched with interest. Her screams and pleas were either ignored or laughed at. Something told him what was happening and that it was not right._

_The child wasn't certain when he moved however he did so without thought. The "fight" if you wished to call it that last all of a second from start to finish in real time. Though seeing it through his perception the entire thing was longer then it needed to be. Two flicks of the wrist and two bodies hit the ground. He paused as he looked at the third gang member. The man extricated himself from his involuntary partner and turned to face the threat that stood as high as his waist._

_The child moved again, easily disarming the blade from the man's grasp before using it to disarm him properly. A male scream rent into the night with the woman's as he fell to the ground clutching at the now empty socket where his arm had been. Without treatment this one would likely die soon, just like the rats that he had hunted. He wondered how long it would take._

_Curious again the child reached down and picked up the arm he had severed. There was a good bit of meat there. The woman pulled herself up to her feet and she said something. He didn't care to learn it for now but he would make note of it for later. Watching the third man bleed out he squished the flesh of the bicep experimentally before he took a bite. It wasn't bad, not good, but not bad. There was definitely more meat here then on rats and dogs. The woman stood staring at the child in disbelief and horror written plain upon her face. She turned on her heel and fled, he let her go. His meal shouldn't be left to go cold._

He reached up and removed the helmet, the fact that one of his world's was black did nothing to affect his perceptions as he peeled it off and blinked. When he cracked his eyes open there was light all around him, it was entirely too bright. He dropped the helmet on the table he had been strapped to earlier. There were still little sensor and attachments connected to him.

Annoyed, the Night Haunter removed all of the little instruments while she was gone. He was still in a cage being observed however that was no bother for him. He did also remove the IV feeds and dropped everything on the examination bench he had been seated on earlier. Once the Night Haunter was disconnected from everything, he considered his options rapidly and made his decisions.

She came back several minutes later with a small collection of ready to eat meals. While he had seen them before Night Haunter had never tried any of them. The meals ready to eat had looked alright from a distance but he had simply not been interested in them. Fresh food was his personal preference he supposed.

"Daryn let me in." She deposited the MREs on the examination table next to the helmet. He looked over at them curiously as she indicated which ones were what. "This is chili mac and I would have to say it tastes the best by far of the MREs. Didn't have a lot of other choices though so I had to grab a veggie burger and a chicken-a-la king. I nabbed a beef stew for myself, I'll share if you ask nice though. I don't like the taste of the other two at all but like I said not a lot of options. Considering your size compared to a typical human I figured three of these might actually fill you up a bit."

Night Haunter opened the chili mac MRE and examined the contents curiously. Sevatarion found it amusing to watch him examine and then proceed to dissect the meal before he actually ate any of it. She deftly ripped into her beef stew and started to devour it hungrily. It had not occurred to her that she had forgotten to eat real food the past few days since he first came in until she had some in front of her. She watched him as he finished off the first MRE and went onto the next. It took them all of fifteen minutes to chow down in silence until he opened the chicken-a-la king. Then he asked,

"Are you trying to poison me?" Sevatar burst into laughter at that.

"No. That is one of the least popular MREs for a good reason. It isn't very good, though it still meets the requirements for nutritional content." He was sniffing at is and giving her a look of clear disbelief. "Konrad, it won't kill you. At least I don't think it will. Before you judge something you should give it a try."

"Why?"

"To try it and see if you like it. If you don't care for it then you know for next time."

"This may actually be dangerous to eat based on the smell. Even for me..."

"Try it."

"After you." He held the packet of chicken-based protein towards her.

"If I try some, and keep it down, then you have to eat the rest. Deal?" He nodded once and she took a spoonful of the stuff before she plopped it in her mouth and made a face. It was amusing as she grinned at him and then swallowed. Sticking her tongue out at him to show it was gone she gestured towards him. "Now finish your meal Curze then we can get back to work again." He frowned and obliged her, having lost his first bet. Some time later they were done with the meal, though he ate the last MRE rather more slowly then not. More out of reluctance then wanting to savor it she suspected.

Once that was done Sevatar moved the machine back to where it could scan his chest again and then pulled up the chart and history for him to see. He commented on their lunch while she drew the information up.

"That was unpleasant to say the least." He sat back down on the bench and spared a glance at the doctor before he turned to look at the machine that he was being observed by again. The screen pulled up a series of charts taken from the code. She started speaking.

"Your body was definitely responding to something that was not there during the code blue. Based on the reactions I would assume it was trying to recover from some massive bleeding trauma. Your heart rate plummeted along with your blood pressure. However you had a fight or flight reaction or sorts."

He looked at her expectantly.

"Your response time, sensitivity, and overall ability to perceive and react activity suddenly spiked. I would assume some sort of adrenal reaction. Since I don't know if flight is an option for you in this state I will assume you were bred with a violent purpose in mind. The already impressive resources and faculties you have seem to become more focused specifically for combat." She indicated one of his organs on the screen,

"This organ suddenly got very busy pushing extra chemicals into your bloodstream. I will admit I am very tempted to try and figure out the rest of your abilities." There were several other organs she indicated as she moved the screen around. "Some of these appear to serve as various forms of filtration and would likely explain the relatively short time the drug stays in your system. It would also explain why you likely don't get ill or may be immune to most diseases that we know of."

"That would make sense." The barest hint of amusement crossed his face as he gave a weak attempt at a smirk. "Though I suspect that I may be immune to the effects of the poison you gave me earlier called chicken-a-la king."

"Didn't care for the taste of it all? Is there something you would rather have instead for your next meal?" She started her own round of laughter as he gave her an honest answer.

"I would rather eat rats."

* * *

Author's Notes

Sorry about the delay there folks, I ended up being a sick puppy for a little bit. Mostly better now! So for this one I didn't really pull visions from a specific source since there are a few instances in canon where Konrad Curze flashes back in some way shape or form. As usual let me know what you think and feel free to toss me feedback! I will see you next time.


	8. Chapter 8 - Mentors

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 8: Mentors

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.

* * *

Hunter moved briskly as he walked into the chambers of his current headache. She sat with her hands sitting in her lap resting on a book she had been reading quietly. A data slate identical to his sat next to a glass of some fruity drink she apparently enjoyed. The woman was lovely to look at with her midnight black hair and her own pale skin. As was common on Nostramo her eyes were black throughout, though there might have been a splash of color there. Her skin was supple and soft. Though her frame was apparently well toned and used to hard work. Which was common enough for anyone who had spent time working the foundries, or surviving on the streets of Nostramo. If he had a choice in the matter he would wrap his hands around that lovely throat of hers.

If they had been a couple, they would have made a handsome pair. As it was the two people in the room couldn't be farther from lovers if they tried. He didn't bother to dissuade the thought that he had claimed the woman among his subordinates. Though it was clear to both of them it was the other way around. She had started him down this path when he first started seeing his own visions as a child. Now he was a man full grown he was stuck with her. In all of their years she had never deigned to give her own name. He had always called her by generalities. It was one of many things that irritated him about her.

The Hunter was annoyed. He had done the work of capturing the Night Haunter and been watching the visions through the helmet but they did not make sense. Everything currently seemed to involve others of his kind across other worlds far from Nostramo. He was tired of waiting for the visions of what was supposed to happen here. Thus far the only thing that they had seen was a brief vision of the Night Haunter at one of the grand balls that happened every year. Nothing had been clear as to when it was though he had recognized several of the nobles in the vision so it would happen soon enough that they had not aged much. Soon enough wasn't acceptable.

"When? When will he have the visions I require? I need to know the path to take over this world as the Dark King?"

"He has already started having those my lord. The near continuous presence of the Dream Bringer in his system will help to ensure that his gifts develop far more rapidly than they would otherwise. Though there are certain risks involved as you already know."

"Are you referring to stopping his heart again?"

"Hearts." She corrected him mildly. "No, I am not."

"I am done being patient woman. You have been an asset but now you are beginning to outlive your usefulness. It seems I have learned everything of value you have to teach me." The threat the carried in his tone of voice was plain. She sat quietly with her ankles crossed as she looked at him thoughtfully.

"Hunter, the time for the Dark King to rise will happen soon enough. For now, Konrad Curze has little control over his murderous visions. He will need to be exposed to the noble caste directly. I suspect he will reign his judgement upon them. Especially when he finds out your among them as well my lord. His visions appear to be triggered in part by similar events." He turned and yelled at the woman,

"Then what context have the rest of his visions had? What has been the point to all of this?" As he snarled at her he violently threw the glass across the room. "I am failing to see what any of what he has seen has applied to Nostramo. None of it is happening here and now! Why are these other scenes so potent then? What is forcing them to be so damned important?"

"As I said, for the moment it seems there needs to be context for a vision to be forced. Something happening now that somehow reminds his talents of something that is going to happen. Such as nearly strangling our good doctor Monygham while doing the same to the Lion in his vision. Or perhaps they are completely random. Who knows?"

"Random? Who knows. Those are the most unhelpful answers you have given me in a long time." His anger and volume rose with each word. "You've not told me how you can see what he does without the helmet on! The only reason I know about this knight in lion armor is because you shared it with me through whatever abilities you refuse to reveal! Also you haven't told me why you insist on having those two almost constantly working together with Curze. I didn't vet either of them, you did, and I still don't know why." Hunter closed the distance between them. A hand on either side of the chair held in in place as he leaned close his breathe closing the distance between them without effort.

She sat quietly for what felt like forever though in truth it was perhaps a few seconds before she answered. If the woman was concerned her body language didn't give it away. Hunter was practically seething as he waited for her to respond. That moment stretched for an eternity as he stared down at her. Murder was clear in his eyes and his self-control was fading with his sanity. She deigned to answer him as his hands started to move.

"That particular brother's name is Lion. Like our guest he is another of His sons, however I doubt you will ever meet him. The Dark King will rise and you my dear are a requirement for that. However, it doesn't matter right now. As I have told you multiple times, I have my reasons my dear Hunter." She didn't seem bothered by their close proximity in the least.

"Stop trying me woman. I have passed some of your tests and failed others. While I know full-well I am quite insane without your presence I am not an idiot. Put me into the loop, I need to know. You know so much about beings that we have never interacted with outside of our own systems. You will not share this knowledge or it's source." He fairly snarled as he drew himself closer to the petite woman. Frustration and anger crossed his face in equal measure. As she started to speak again, she caught his gaze with her own. He froze in place and couldn't have moved if he wanted to.

"I play the long game my Hunter. What he has seen is nothing compared to what will come. Have no doubt in that. However, I have already started on the next part of our goals. While he is not the little bird among his brothers it is time for him to learn to spread his wings. The first time-delayed release will happen soon enough. Before the last one he will take his leave of our hospitality. While he is here, I suggest you get back to work with the rest of the nobles. Now come sit awhile while I read this fascinating book."

"I... how do you do that to me?" He felt himself relaxing as he stared into her eyes. The tension fading from his form. She smiled with a light that was false and he didn't recognize it. Drawn in he gazed at her for a second before looking down at on the unfamiliar scrawl on the small tome. "What 'sit about?" Hunter found himself moving to obey her his frustrations gone nearly as quick as they had come.

"Something that hasn't been written yet."

* * *

Konrad decided he didn't mind having someone to eat with as he watched her gather up the mess from their lunch and set it aside. She spoke first,

"We're going to figure out how you can see me while you're wearing that helmet. It should prevent you from seeing pretty much everything as far as I know. I have a few theories I want to test out. Most of your abilities appear to be a form of psionic craft. Would you put that helmet back on? I'm not going to give you any of the Dream Bringer right now. I want to have you try without having a drug induced to your system."

Konrad looked at her before he moved to pull the thought helmet on again. Once he had it settled on his head he asked. "What do you have in mind?"

"I'm going to try to walk your through a cognitive exercise that we use on patients that suffer from severe PTSD."

"You think I am traumatized?" He didn't bother to conceal amusement in his voice.

"To be frank, yes I do. According to the initial report I was given on you, yes. You have had the witch sight all your life even as a small child. Though I don't know much about that beyond you surviving unaided from a very early age. So yes, more trauma there. I mean to figure part of how you can see me with this helmet on. I don't think traditional therapy will help you don't worry I won't waste either of our times with that. Mostly I just want you to try some of the visualization exercises and see how, or if, they work." It was his turn to ask her,

"What did you have in mind?"

"It's a small part of cognitive therapy. You start with forming a picture of something in your mind and then you fill in small details, things that stick out to you. Then you basically run a simulation. How would each of your senses react to that stimulus? What would you see, hear, smell, taste and feel? Once that is done it is figuring out how that simulation makes you feel emotionally."

"I don't understand that."

"Which part?"

"The emotions. I have observed several, mostly fear. However I don't understand how to bring them forth, honestly I have no interest in doing so either."

"Oh. This is going to take a while if I try to explain it. Hang on. I'm going to fetch something that will explain what I want you to do. Stay put for now." The good doctor picked up the desiccated remains of the MREs and took then to be discarded. "It will take me a little bit to find what I want to show you. I'll be back shortly.

He decided that boredom was something he could feel shortly after she left, though he had more then enough self-discipline he would wait as long as he wanted to. For now he didn't want to. The Night Haunter pulled the helmet off and looked over at the medical supply cart still inside his cages. Seeing something potentially useful he then started to rummage.

When she returned she had found him playing with the thought helmet. She wasn't sure if that was good or bad, though she erred on the side of bad. Sevatar stood with her hands on her hips. A data-slate forgotten in one hand. Konrad had decided to use the suture kit to dismantle to the helmet. The Hunter would be furious later. She felt like she was dealing with a willful child that she could do precisely nothing about.

"Why won't you leave that alone?" He ignored her, as he had been doing for the last five minutes. She had done some research during his brief stay into the visions and had a few ideas she had wanted to try, he simply decided to do what he wanted. She tried again, "Konrad we had a deal. You are supposed to let me do my job. Also I want to try to figure out how you can see things, in particular me, while you have the helmet in pieces in your hands on." He replied without looking up,

"Well it is in pieces so I guess you will have to wait. Your job is my health, I'm healthy. Just bored." She sighed and reached for her forehead.

"Fine, then at least tell me what you are hoping to learn from this behavior? Or that helmet?"

"I'm not sure what I will learn, that's why I am taking it apart." He continued his slow dissection of the equipment at a leisurely pace. She had no doubt in her mind if he had wanted to, he could have taken it apart and put it back together again in half the time he has been debating with her. Or rather ignoring her, and likely more then once. She gave up and pulled herself over to sit next to him and watch. It was interesting even though it wasn't her field of expertise. He took it apart and frowned as he looked at the configuration of all of the pieces. Glancing over she asked,

"So what does all of this do? It seems like pretty straightforward components to me. With a few odds and ins. I'm not sure what some of these are for", she indicated a pair of small stones. He didn't have an answer for her as he inspected them. From across the room by his console the technician, Daryn, piped up.

"Those are a type psyker stones. They help to form the connection between the helmet and the wearer. That helmet is a mix of technology and psionic craft." Konrad got up and took part of the helmet with him as he walked towards the technician. The primarch stopped at the edge of the force field. He indicated another piece of unfamiliar technology and Daryn was only too happy to explain.

Sevatar watched the two of them as they proceeded to go back and forth and she sat quietly. Daryn noticed her observing them as they talked from across the room and felt his cheeks flush. If he noticed the reaction Curze didn't comment. He simply continued the conversation,

"How much do you know about the mental part of this? I do not see how the information is transmitted? There is no telepath to send or receive it." The technician corrected him,

"Actually there is. Though they are strictly off limits so I am not sure who it is. However how it works is that while the wearer, in this case you, is operating an unusual mental function the stones will relay the raw information over to a receiving psyker nearby. That person receives the information from you as it happens and has implants and augmentations to allow them to repeat the information in digital media. It's basically the bridge between technology and psionic craft. It's actually really ingenious and must have taken years to develop."

Sevatar stood by amused and watched a the primarch absorbed the information at a terrifying pace. His interest in knowledge was both endearing and a bit disconcerting. It was like watching a drowning man struggling for air, except he was starving for oxygen. She sat quietly and simply waited for them to change topics. When they did, she got lost in the jargon that made up the technician's vocabulary and that Konrad apparently understood. The primarch continued to question the now not so shy technician who answered all of his questions from his position beside his console.

Konrad paused for a moment as he felt a pressure build and fade from the collar. Another bead had been broken, though he didn't immediately feel the effects. The man looked down and tweaked the settings again as he kept up the dialogue with Curze. There was a slight fluctuation that reared and then withdrew back to normal baseline. Daryn made a note of it and paused for a moment. He asked,

"Are you alright?"

The vision started though this time he had almost no difficulty keeping track of both places at once.

"Yes, I'm fine."

_Konrad looked around curiously. He was standing somewhere he did not recognize at all. The place was a mix of opulent shades of purple and gold. If he cared for design at all it would have been a wonderful sight to behold. Glancing down the armor from his last vision was gone. He was wearing the somber black clothing he had been retrieved from Nostramo in. It was also the pre-eminent color on the sunless world of Nostramo and he much preferred it. _

_He was following along behind another brother of his, the one with braided silver hair and purple and gold robes that were as ornate as the person who wore it. His brother was talking and indicating various pieces of art on the wall as he escorted his newly discovered sibling through his ship. _

_"As I said before little brother. I am Fulgrim and I have the great pleasure of mentoring you for a time before you are off to your legion." A smile came easily to the silver haired primarch and he wore it as naturally as he did his own skin. _

_Konrad had already decided the ship, the art and the person in front of him were gaudy, to put it mildly. This brother preened himself like some exotic songbird in a pleasure garden. Though for now he had no intention of sharing that series of thoughts as his brother continued to talk. They moved onto a more visually sedate section of the ship that was divided into barracks and crew quarters. _

_"Our Father and brothers are already departed. We will remain here for a time to recruit from your adopted home world before moving on to training and arming them and you. These are your quarters for now, unless you would rather be somewhere else?" _

_They stopped outside a larger room near the end of the barracks, it turned out to be a suite of sorts. Though everything was scaled to his size, it was strange not feeling the part of a giant. _

_"No, this is fine." _

_Once you are settled, I have already made the arrangements to get you some gear and books from my own collection. Perhaps after you take a bath you would join me for a proper meal? The bath wouldn't hurt at all and you look like you have been starved most of your life. What have they been feeding you?" Konrad looked over at his brother and responded softly. _

_"I think you mean who."_

* * *

Author's Notes

Thank you again for anyone who takes the time to read my story! We will see you again soon!

Thank you for the first review Dawnlight09!


	9. Chapter 9 - Blood in the Dark

Night Haunter's Rise

Chapter 9: Blood in the Dark

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.

* * *

Hunter watched as she finished her book and waited for the woman to speak again,

"My lord I would suggest you take your rest, you have been rather busy of late." He gave her a look that spoke volumes before he responded,

"You mean your going to enact your plan for him to leave now you have what you need in place?"

"That is exactly correct my lord. Would you care to watch the proceedings?" He reached for the tablet by way of answer.

"Then I suggest you start your performance and we shall see how well your team does with improvising." The woman answered with a smile as she turned to leave the room.

"Enjoy the show my dark king."

* * *

Sevatarion sighed as she rubbed her temples. The two men were both doing a terrific job of ignoring her as they had moved on again to other topics. The primarch had put the helmet back together again and just let it hang from his fingers. They were on to talking about how different communication channels worked. The woman walked over to the entryway for the primarch's area and Daryn started in on the exit procedure. Konrad made no attempts to move as he continued the conversation with the technician.

The medic passed through the first barrier and waited while the metal cage was unlocked as well. It opened with a dutiful, "click." At that moment the lights went out and the power feeding the force field went with it. Luckily the room also had support lumens to provide additional light near the panels. Those native to Nostramo were used to little to no light and the sudden darkness didn't concern them for more then a second. Unluckily for them that second was long enough for the Night Haunter to make his move. With ease he darted through the now unlocked gate. The only thing Sevatar felt from his passing was a sudden presence of wind as he moved so fast that the air around her followed him trying to keep up.

The Night Haunter had already seen this scene play out and was more than ready to act when his opportunity came available. As he rushed out of the now field-less entrapment area he narrowed his targets rapidly. It took only moments for the combat, if you wanted to call it that, to start and stop as he darted between the guards. While he could make the time to enjoy himself he decided against it. Currently his task was to focus on removing the threats, and then he could move forward.

Daryn didn't realize the primarch had moved until he was already gone. The lights were out for less time then it had taken for him to draw a startled breath, and the skirmish was over in half of that time. Curze moved so quickly that non of the mortal perception in the room was able to keep up, much less track him. By the time the last guard had started to raise his weapon the body of the first still hadn't hit the ground. Of all of them the technician actually had a chance to react as his hand tried to dart forward. The primarch stood behind him, appearing as if summoned from nothing. The technician's wrist was easily caught as he attempted to hit the emergency switch. The primarch had stopped as suddenly as he had started. The red emergency lights finally flipped on drawing the backup power with it. Daryn forgot how to speak in such close proximity to the power of the being behind him for a moment. He was still breathing, that was something. He managed to talk after a second,

"I would rather not die today... please?" He wasn't deigned with a verbal response.

The holding area had gone from it's usual state of quiet machinery and patrolling footsteps to a freshly gifted murder scene in seconds. The doctor took one look at the slain guards and shook her head. There was nothing she could do for any of them. She turned and glared daggers at the demi-god who was standing behind Daryn with a hand over the technicians. The medic spoke up,

"So now what? If your plan was to go and kill people you have succeeded beautifully." He looked back over at her.

"Now, we leave. Unless you would rather stay here?" Neither of them responded to that question. Daryn made no attempt to move his hand though he did speak up,

"Seeing as I can't push the alarm before you kill me care to let me go?" The primarch released his wrist. Daryn released his breathe and took a half step away from the console. Curze looked down at it for a moment and then glanced over to a screen. He started tapping experimentally on the console buttons. The technician watched him,

"That's a great way to trip the alarms if you not careful." The look the technician received from both of them spoke volumes. After a few more presses the red lights remained and they all heard a whoosh as the door opened. Night Haunter looked at the pair,

"I am leaving. I don't care if you come or not. Though I suspect your 'Dark King' might." With that he turned and walked out of the door. Daryn looked at his console and then looked up Konrad and Sevatar.

"You two go ahead I'll see what I can't do to help on this end." She wasn't entirely sure why he made the offer of assistance but she didn't comment. Konrad looked at him for a moment almost as if seeing through him and then nodded once curtly. As they walked past Daryn reached his hand out towards Sevatar and offered her a firm handshake. She looked down at her hand for a moment and then back up at him. He smiled and replied to her silent question,

"You know my brother owns that place for I tried to get you to have lunch with me. Maybe we can meet up later?"

"Maybe. Though I doubt it."

"That makes two of us."

With that the medic followed the primarch who had already made his way out the door. They moved at a pace that was swift for her down the hallways. He appeared to move at a brisk walk. It seemed to her that Curze knew exactly where he was going. The doctor noticed he seemed to be slightly off as he walked. She watched him curiously and reached a hand out towards him to touch his arm. When he turned back to glance at her she saw that same lack of focus in his eyes that she had seen before. It seemed as if he had broken another one of the beads. She started to ask him a question and he shook his head and turned away from her. It appeared that mystery would have to wait for the moment as he took off again as the industrial tunnels began to branch off.

* * *

She watched his reactions and said nothing. So far this had played out exactly as she had seen that it would. Standing smoothly she addressed her dark king,

"I am going to watch this from my chamber. Perhaps see what can be seen." He waved a hand dismissively as focused his attention solely on the images before his eyes. When she left his side and the door closed he felt the lack of her calming presence. She drove his madness away, without her it came back. Hunter didn't care.

The primarch had clearly learned the layout of the complex in the few moments he had been given the schematics by the woman. He was taking a shorter route towards the labs. It was the not the way out of the complex that he had expected him to take. She had seemed convinced he would leave through the old facility. Another mistake to be addressed later. His hand reached out to the side he picked up his glass of alcohol he sipped it as he watched the progress they made. Smiling to himself he tapped his vox and opened a channel to the armed personnel under his employ. He might as well enjoy the show a bit.

* * *

They moved with purpose though for the most part the Night Haunter moved in bursts of activity now to barely within her sight before freezing to wait for her to catch up and then start the cycle over again. Sevatar suspected it was mostly so that she could keep up with him. They moved past the corridors she was familiar with, though he was leading them towards the science labs. The entire base was covered in red lights. This section of the base was honeycombed with passages and hallways that crashed into each other. Each segment of the corridor was divided by a set of double doors that had to be opened by badge access. The Night Haunter casually ripped each of pads off the wall to short the doors and leave them unlocked as he passed There were very few exits and none that she knew of in that section of the facility.

The medics vox bead went off at that point. They both recognized the voice instantly,

"It seems you have grown tired of most of my staff Lord Curze? Except for the good doctor, or maybe not so good." The man giggled slightly. Konrad didn't respond and kept moving.

"Are you going to ignore me? That could take out some of the fun. Perhaps we could play a game or warmer or colder?" Again he was ignored though this time he was not giggling, so that was a plus. After several seconds turned into a minute he finally chimed in again.

"Very well then. Have fun escaping!" The man burst into cackles, for some reason it hurt to hear the cacophony of his voice. Neither of them could yet place the mad man's influence yet, though at least one suspected. A light flashed for an instant on her vox bead and Konrad plucked the bead from her jacket and crushed it between two fingers. She said,

"I think we need to be anywhere else, that was the tracking signal." He didn't bother to agree with the obvious. It was as if the Dark King had materialized a group of guards with his little announcement when the next set of doors opened. The resistance they met was armed with standard firearms. Slug throwers the lot of them, and high end ones too. Sevatar hugged the wall and made herself as small as possible. The first group they came across sent his visions far into the future again. Though he managed both present and future at once, it was harder but doable. The human guards before him didn't stand a chance.

_He had leaned against the wall and glanced around the next corner. There was another group that was waiting patiently for an ambush. One he currently had no intention of stepping into, mostly because there was always something hidden with the Dark Angels. His brother had put patrols out while all of them appeared to be the same they were not, some were far more dangerous then others. Another group of angels would come after this one had acquired contact, with or without being able to report it. He knew better then to play with the scouts in the belly of his brother's flagship and started to head back down the way he had come._

A second group of guards came from beyond the intersection where the first had died. They didn't see him right away as they looked at the gore of the other guards. Night Haunter moved so fast as if to be teleporting. The whole of the initial guard group was dead at his feet. A faint hiss announced the presence of a third group coming from further up the hall on one of the many intersecting corridors. In the waking moment he attacked the second patrol, in the vision he fell back.

_As he stepped away from the potential sight lines the ambush group a patrolling set came around the corner at him. That they been dispatched and moved in seemingly random patterns did little to appease him as swung into the corridor behind him. Annoyingly he was hemmed between the two groups of Dark Angels. Curze brought his claws to bear as he deftly charged into the center of the patrolling group of space marines that had walked into the claws of death._

The Night Haunter moved easily and predicted the vast majority of the shots. Even as fast as the primarch was he was not going to be able to avoid all of the metal coming at him. Though none of them would prove to troublesome to remove. That could be addressed later, though there would be no later for these souls.

_The ambush group had moved up to flank him and try to keep him pinned down. Curze watched the tips of bolters and moved enough to change how their shells would hit his armored form. Rather than attempting to clear the angels patrol group before him Curze reached his clawed hands out toward the groups of angels on either side of him. After only a thought had cross his transhuman mind a wave of psychic force left his hands in the vision to fill the hall with violent energies. The surprised Dark Angels were hurled away from him onto their backs. It also blew out every light in the section of corridor. Not that shedding blood in the dark really mattered to Konrad Curze._

She didn't see him move as the hallway lights suddenly cracked and went out casting the entire area into utter darkness save for the red laser sights on the weapons. Sevatar listened as the guards started to scream and fire blindly hoping to hurt the thing that was about to murder them. They actually managed to do so. He felt the bullets hit his sides and embed themselves into his flesh. They were not going to kill him, far from it. Though they may slow him down slightly. The last shot that struck him was something heavier that exploded against him with enough force to throw a man. It failed to do so to the primarch but the flash of light that came with the shot of was the last thing that guard saw before his weapon was ripped from him along with his head. That left the Night Haunter with only the final group to attend from farthest away from the medic behind him.

_Voices were raised in alarm as they voxed the contact, though these were Astartes. Most of them were able to bring weapons to bear. Curze's blades parted ceramite and flesh as he murdered two of his nephews from the patrol group as they tried to stand. The ambush group fired at the primarch's side. While his armor was impressive the bolter rounds that came at him were designed with tanks in mind. Using his unnatural sight the primarch jerked clear of the rounds that could do serious damage as he brought his claws to bear yet again and removed the head of one angel and the arm of another. Curze spun and cut down two more dark angels as one of the rounds penetrated his armor with it's tip and detonated._

The Night Haunter heard the clicks of a several pins being released as he spun away from the last group he had slain. He turned his attentions toward the third and final wave. He was off balance from the bolter in his vision for less than the blink of an eye as explosions came at him from both times. Though here and now was not nearly as expansive as then and later, the overlapping detonations forced him to backpedal for a moment before he surged into the last group. Appearing amidst them as a murderous shadow.

_The bolter shot took him in the hip and knocked him back with enough force to pause his murderous attack. It bought time for the two left in the ambush group. One of them snatched a krak from his hip and hurled it directly at Curze after tapping the shortest possible delay. To him it seemed that the grenade blossomed into fiery life less then 2 meters from him. He spun and lifted both gauntleted arms to protect his exposed face and neck from the explosion. Despite his armor it still had sufficent force to knock him back against the wall if he didn't do anything about it. Curze allowed himself to be repositioned back by the force of the krak grenade before he in turn deal his own vicious counter attack. He had to repay the gift his nephews had given him. It didn't take long._

There was none left alive to talk about what had happened. The whole of the slaughter had been condensed down into less than one violent and bloody minute. Screams of those who weren't dead yet lasted only moments. After the fact the only thing she heard when it was done was the faint sounded of blood dripping onto the floor from the Night Haunter's hands.

There was a single pin prick of light in the utter darkness of the hallway and he started at it for a fraction of a second before we regarded the doctor. She had turned on her pen light to inspect his work. Sevatar looked first at Konrad. He was a bloody mess, though most of that was obviously not his. She asked him something. Though he heard the doctor speaking to him. It took a moment to register what she asked,

"Did you have to kill them all?"

He countered softly. "Do you really care?"

Without missing a beat, she snapped back. "Well the lack of response and the presence of bodies is going to make getting out harder. So yes, I care. Unlike you I am not combatant."

He remained silent for several seconds before he responded,

"That's going to change quickly. Either you will become one or you will die." Using her examination flash light she looked over the bodies before she bent down and took one of the side arms from a slain guard. At his look she commented,

"I said I was a non-combatant, I never said I didn't know my way around a weapon. I am lousy with guns but, this is Nostramo after all." She shrugged. Curze adjusted his mental assessment before he responded.

"I'll clear the path I want them to follow and then come back for you. Leave the light off." As she clicked the small flashlight off he vanished again into the shadow of the corridor. Something that big should not be that stealthy. The medic pushed herself to the wall and knelt next to it so she could be the smallest possible target.

After what felt like an eternity alone in the dark she found herself thinking while she waited. Sevatar crouched in an alcove of the hallway where he had claimed the patrol groups. Periodically she still heard the Night Haunter's hunt as screams of terror and agony tore from the vox beads on the corpses of the guard. She dared not attempt to stumble along in the utter blackness, even her Nostramo born eyes needed some small source of light to function despite the perpetual dark of the world.

Part of her felt that being alone in a darkened hallway with only the screams of the dying or her own heartbeat was the worst thing she experienced. It was almost ridiculous to think about. Here she was, a doctor and a professional healer kneeling in the dark with a gun she barely knew how to hold waiting for the monster from the shadows to come and save her. Her thoughts drifted as she waited silently for the Night Haunter to come back.

_The flesh parted easily with the right pressure applied. The weapon was precise, a scalpel in the hand. A clean cut that would leave the skin marked forever appeared on the wide plane of muscled flesh laid out. Next came another cut, and then another, and another all joined together to form a quilt. Such weaving took time, patience and precision. The well of blood the blade brought to the surface looked delicious as another thread was added..._

The other part of her mind wished to be inflicting such torments to see how the subjects would react. She blinked the intrusive thoughts away to focus on staying still and silent. The sounds had all but stopped from the corpses vox units. Despite this the doctor didn't stray from where she was concealed. She felt his presence before she heard him as he spoke softly,

"Follow." She pulled herself to her feet to obey him and then Sevatar reached a hand out to touch the primarch for guidance. The mere touch of the cloth robes he still wore stained her hands, though she couldn't see it the warmth told her enough. Konrad Curze had spilled blood in the dark as if he had been created to do exactly that thing. She held his robe as he led her through the depths of the secure installation that had become a morgue to a door and tunnel she had not even known existed. One thing stuck with Sevatar as she followed his leadership in the darkness.

The lights never came back on.

* * *

Author's notes

Thanks so much for your patience!

Also thank you all gift of your time taken to read my work!

Feedback is a gift! Please feel free to review and share your thoughts.


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